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Girl child

A teacher holds up a drawing of an adolescent girl who has just been caught unawares by her first menstruation cycle, while at school. She's addressing neat rows of young women sitting in class, in the town of Bol, in Chad.

Limited educational opportunities for girls and barriers to completing 12 years of education cost countries between $15 trillion and $30 trillion in lost lifetime productivity and earnings, says a new World Bank report launched ahead of the July 12 United Nations Malala Day.

While the number of child marriages occurring among Syrian refugees in Iraq is not available, research conducted among Syrian refugees elsewhere suggests a link between the poverty and instability facing displaced families like Aysheh’s, and rising pressure for girls to get married. Feeling helpless, Aysheh sought help from the UNFPA-supported Zahrat Al-Yasamin women’s social centre in the camp.

From the rise of the #Metoo movement to numerous new laws on violence against women and the conviction of the 'butcher of Bosnia' for war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity, including sexual violence, this timeline is a selection of some of the noteworthy moments for women's rights and gender equality from around the world this year.

There are 679 million children younger than five years of age in the world today-almost one in 10 of the world's population. Who looks after these children when parents go out to work, and what are we missing when we do not consider this point?

Girls between 5 and 14 years old spend 40 per cent more time, or 160 million more hours a day, on unpaid household chores and collecting water and firewood compared to boys their age, according to a report released by UNICEF ahead of International Day of the Girl on 11 October.

Children who are excluded from education often face multiple and overlapping disadvantages. They are poor, rural and often girls. In this data interactive a clearer picture is drawn on why they are out of school.